Art Reviews

The Eccentric Birmingham-Bloomfield Edition creative living, Corinne Abatt editor/644-1100 Thursday, February 18, 1982

(Image title: That's Stephen Goodfellow in the center hosing down a painting for a party of friends in his backyard in Detroit. He still drives the Volkswagon in the painting.)

His social commentary bites, amuses, amazes By Corinne Abatt staff writer

Some artists call it a muse, Stephen Goodfellow calls it a monster. Goodfellow says he lets his monster out every couple of days and as a result, keeps his sanity.

But his monster, as evidenced by the paintings on display at Xochipilli Gallery in Birmingham through March 13 is exuberant, flamboyant and likeable

So's this artist, who in his late 20s has lived in Denmark, Nigeria, England, but delights in the chaos of his chosen hometown, Detroit.

"I liked Detroit so much," he said, "I didn't want to live anywhere else."

He ended up here after completing his MFA at Wayne State, and is, by background, a printmaker. He carries a lot of that over into his acrylic paint- ings which are done in an unusual way.

He uses only three tubes of paint, red, yellow and blue, to do all of his wildly colorful, large works on canvas. He starts with a white canvas, applies one color at a time and uses gum arabic to block out certain areas, much as is done in making prints.

WHEN THE PAINTING is finished, Goodfellow gives a "hosing down" par- ty in his backyard which is like an unveiling or a ship launching. The hos- ing removes the gum arabic and at that moment, the finished painting can be seen for the first time. One of the paint- ings in the show is of a hosing party in Goodfellow's backyard in Detroit.

All of the paintings are drawn from his own life expriences, often coupled with a strange kind of fantasy. But, the fantasy never moves away from con- temporary life.

"Everything that I've experienced, my hopes and fears, I feel are reflected in my work."

Goodfellow not only works as a realist, showing real people in recognize- able settings, he documents with a ven- geance, from the titles and authors of the books scattered about to the signs and paintings on the walls of his interior scenes.

While not the largest in the show, one of the most memorable is a crucifixion scene. The martyr is carrying his cross through a crowd of people as uniformed guards oversee the action. In- stead of a crown of thorns, the victim wears a Mickey Mouse hat.

At the top of the cross is written "Have a nice day." Simon is trying to attach a roller-skate to to end of the cross to make it easier to move up the hill. A bored looking child in the crowd is licking an ice cream cone. A man with an impatient look is checking his watch, probably not so much to time the event as to wonder if he is late for an appointment.

FAR FROM blasphemous, it is rather a condemnation of our attitudes toward the suffering of our fellow men. Not all of Goodfellow's works are of such serious subjects. He has fun, too. His man about to get into a bathtub is autobiographical - even to the setting, complete with cockroach on the floor,

dishes in the sink (it is a small flat), plants in the window over the bathtub and dirty pans on the stove. And it is details like these that give the work a particular charm because of them.

GOODFELLOW SAID THIS this painting came from his having lived in a house in Howell where he was per- mitted one bath a week, consequently, it became a big event.

In a "Blasphmy Series," he brings Egyptian gods into contemporary sett- ings. Osiris, the Egyptian god of life de- livers the milk while a couple wait in the house at a small table. In another, Anubis, the god of death, argues with a factory foreman. The factory looks real and productive, but the end prod- uct is a bit hard to pinpoint.

"I love the choice of making make- believe machinery," said Goodfellow pointing to the strange looking items on the production line.In Tomato," a politician with a bank of microphones in front of him is the subject. A tomato is beaded his way, but the message is on the call letters on the microphones. Taken in order they read, LIES AND DRIBBLE

Goodfellow debunks everything from medical specialization to quick pick- ups (people, not Geritol). His paintings ways-thought provoking. Like George are usually amusing and almost al- Groz and other artists who were satirists, there's a need for artists like Goodfellow who can make truth not only palatable, but downright enjoyable.

Xochipilli Gallery is at 568 N. Woodward, Birmingham. Hours are 11 am to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday.

Staff photos by Dick Kelley
(Image text: Stephen Goodfellow is an artist by profession and a research scientist by avocation. He recently completed and published a paper on whether gravity can be induced.)

(Image text:The speaker in the painting is just about to be hit by a tomato. The call letters on the microphones have a special message from the artist. They read, "LIES AND DRIVLE.")